How Many People Get It?

Transcript

Cancer epidemiology is just a fancy statistical word, which means how many cases of a cancer are being diagnosed and how many people are dying from it. In the case of prostate cancer, it’s experienced dramatic shifts over the last three decades.

PSA, which is the main screening blood test for prostate cancer, was invented or discovered in the 1980s. And so in the eighties and nineties, there was a huge spike, when PSA finally became available, in the numbers of cases that were diagnosed. And this has declined since then.

Mostly attributed to advances in treatment and screening, the death rate from prostate cancer is a success story. It’s decreased by about 50% in the 1990s compared to present day.

Key Takeaways

1. Cancer epidemiology just means how many cases of a cancer are being diagnosed and how many people are dying from it.

2. PSA, which is the main screening blood test for prostate cancer, was discovered in the 1980s.

3. The PSA test caused a huge spike in cases that were diagnosed and it has declined since then.

4. The death rate from prostate cancer has decreased by about 50% since the 1990s mostly due to treatment and screening advances.